Everybody has probably read the headline:
My first reaction: yippee!
I had an immediate vision of ordering a vax dose on Prime, scheduling my 2-day (or next day) delivery, getting a text message that I was the next stop for one of Amazon’s ubiquitous “last mile” vans, having a certified vaccinator jump out of the van, inoculate me (and my wife), and then speed off in the van.
Then I read the actual letter that Amazon send Pres. Biden and my enthusiasm waned a bit.
After the salutation and a vague offer to help, Amazon’s worldwide retail CEO got to the point.
To summarily paraphrase…
Declare Amazon’s 800,000 employees “essential workers” and get us enough vaccine to inoculate them… which we’ll do: at our sites, using a 3rd party vaccinator.
Then, the rest of the quid pro quo…
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“Additionally, we (Amazon) are prepared to leverage our operations, information technology and communications capabilities and expertise to assist your administration’s vaccination efforts.”
Hmm … that’s enticing.
No question, Amazon is world class in logistics, info technology and direct-to-consumer communications (think: proactive buying recommendations, order status, product feedback).
Amazon could certainly help break the current vax log jam.
Call me cynical, but there’s a fundamental question:
Help from a white knight or a deal with another culture-controlling tech giant?
Nothing is clear or easy these days, is it?
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P.S. I wonder why AMZN didn’t offer to chip in with help sooner? Hmmm.
The Homa Files 
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